When the Customer Is Wrong — And Still Has Something to Teach You

We’ve all heard the mantra: “The customer is always right.” But anyone who has run a company — especially one that deals with support, payments, and tech — knows that’s not always the case. Some customers are confused. Some are angry. Some are unreasonable. And once in a while, you encounter one who is downright abusive.

Some time ago, at Companio, we received a message from a customer that was, frankly, one of the most aggressive we’ve ever seen. Insulting, harassing, threatening, completely out of line. Frustrated with a failed payment attempt, he described our company as “a fucking shitty service,” accused us of deliberately making payments difficult, mocked our intelligence, and threatened to spread negative reviews across social media. All because his card was blocked and he refused to read the error message.

It would’ve been easy to simply cancel the contract with the customer and be done with it. But we didn’t. And here’s why: even in the most irrational and emotionally charged feedback, there’s often a sliver of insight. And if you’re willing to look at it without ego, you can use that feedback — however rude — to improve your company.

What Actually Happened

Let’s break it down.

• The customer had a payment fail due to a card block.
• The system advised using a different card.
• He continued to try with the same card. When he realized he needed to add a new card, he simply tried adding the same (blocked) card over and over again.
• Frustrated, he reached out in our chat outside EU business hours (he’s in Mexico).
• Our chat allows messages to be left after hours for follow-up, and we always get back in less than 24 working hours. That was not OK for him.
• Instead, he sent an aggressively worded message full of insults and threats.

Contrary to what I might have decided after receiving such an abusive message, it was thanks to my CS Manager, Jonathan — whose patience and goodwill far exceed my own — that this person remains a customer today. And not just a customer, but a satisfied one.

Once Jonathan responded, things were resolved quickly. We explained the situation, offered to meet at any time that worked for him (accommodating his time zone), and he apologized.

That would’ve been the end of it. But as CEO, I wanted to take it further.

Boundaries Matter

Before we talk about what we learned, let’s be clear about something:

👉 No company should tolerate abusive, insulting, or threatening behavior from customers.

We’ve now added a clause to our Terms and Conditions stating that we reserve the right to terminate the contract immediately and unilaterally in case of such behavior. Our staff deserves safety, respect, and a professional work environment. No sale is worth sacrificing that.

There’s a toxic trend in tech where “customer obsession” means tolerating any kind of behavior, even harassment. That's not acceptable. Boundaries matter. They protect your team, your values, and your brand integrity.

The Lessons Behind the Insults

But even so — even when the tone is abusive — there’s often a signal beneath the noise. Here’s what we took away from the situation:

1. Our error messages weren’t clear enough.

The customer ignored the system’s message because it wasn’t obvious or actionable enough. So we’re improving that. Soon, if a card fails, the system will:

• Detect blocked or repeatedly failed cards
• Clearly inform the customer why the payment failed
• Provide a one-click link to remove the failed card and add a new one
• Immediately retry the payment with the new card
• Try to detect when a payment method is blocked or has failed in the past, so if the customer tries to add this payment method again, they will be asked to confirm that the payment method has been unblocked or can accept payments again.

That change alone will make the process simpler for hundreds of other customers in the future.

2. Our after-hours messaging could be better.

We’re based in the EU. Most of our customers are too. But some are in the Americas, and timezones can be tricky. While our support chat allows messages to be left when we’re offline, it apparently wasn’t obvious enough.

We’re now reviewing all out-of-hours messages to ensure they are crystal clear and helpful. And we’re evaluating more advanced AI support options to assist customers with urgent needs, even when no agent is available.

3. Edge cases matter.

The angry customer wasn’t the norm — far from it. But edge cases are often where the real friction lives. Solving problems for your most frustrated customers often unlocks improvements for everyone else. That’s the paradox: you can learn more from an abusive user than from a dozen frustrated –but polite– ones.

Ego Is the Enemy

It’s natural to get defensive when someone insults your work. Especially when they’re wrong. But defensiveness doesn’t build better companies. Humility does. So does curiosity.

As a bootstrapped startup, we can’t afford to dismiss issues just because they seem edge cases. Every piece of friction, every “WTF moment,” is a chance to improve. That doesn’t mean you bend over backwards for customers who cross the line. But it does mean you should mine every unpleasant encounter for something you can use.

Even when the customer isn’t right — the experience can still be instructive.

A Final Word

At Companio, one of our six core values is Honest Disruption. It means we don’t let ego stand in the way of improvement. We believe in being radically honest — with our customers, our partners, and ourselves. Even when the feedback is badly worded, unfair, or shouted in capital letters, we ask ourselves: Is there a truth hidden in here? Could we have done something better?

Even when a situation becomes uncomfortable, we try to take a deep breath, de-escalate, and learn something. Because that’s what Honest Disruption is about — being brave enough to listen, humble enough to change, and committed enough to do better next time.

And sometimes, that’s exactly what it takes to turn a “fucking shitty service” into a better one.